Tennessee Basketball: 3 keys to beat Florida Atlantic in Sweet 16 matchup

ORLANDO, FL - MARCH 18: Players of the Tennessee Volunteers huddle against the Duke Blue Devils in the second round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Amway Center on March 18, 2023 in Orlando, Florida. Tennessee won 65-52. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /

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Josiah-Jordan James Tennessee Basketball (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /

Get to the free-throw line

Tennessee’s weakness this season has been its offense, with a tendency to go stagnant for long stretches. To avoid reliance on shot-making in isolation situations, the Vols’ size advantage over FAU can be exploited to attack the rim and draw fouls.

Tennessee can’t fall in love with 3-pointers and hope that Olivier Nkamhoua scores 27 points again. They need to use their physicality and size to their advantage, getting easy buckets off offensive rebounds and at the free-throw line.

Tennessee is 15-3 when it has a free-throw rate of at least 28%, according to EvanMiya.com. Nkamhoua, Phillips, James, and Mahshack will all have smaller matchups (for most of the game) that they can attack with physical drives on the offensive end.

The Volunteers are one of the best offensive-rebounding teams in the country. They’re also one of the most physical teams in the country. Both of those can be used to their advantage against a smaller Florida Atlantic team.

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